Game on for five-a-side footie

Out of the gym, onto the pitch

Researchers from the Department of Exercise and Sport Sciences at the University of Copenhagen have found that a casual kick about with your mates can be just as effective as a running-based training programme over 12 weeks.

Peter Krustrup, who led the Copenhagen-based study, says, “Recreational football is a highly intermittent sport with numerous brief intense actions, including sprinting, turning, jumping, tackling and shooting, interspersed with low-intensity activities.” It’s essentially a whole-body, interval-training workout, without having to enlist a personal trainer or spend thousands of pounds on gym equipment.

The benefits

The study showed that after a 12-week period, the two groups of men performed equally well on a variety of fitness tests, even though one group had been training in the gym while the other had been doing battle on the five-a-side pitch.

Result? The footballers showed that they had been at 90% of their maximum heart rate for longer than their gym-going counterparts, and had also lowered their blood pressure more significantly.

Cheap and cheerful

The "beautiful" game is one of the cheapest and easiest sports to get involved in. All you need is a ball, a group of friends and jumpers for goalposts – much easier on the wallet than about £50 per month at the gym.

Football is also one of the best sports for burning calories. In an hour’s play, the average 190lb man will burn over 800 calories – a rate comparable to swimming, rugby, cycling and basketball.

Makes you feel better about that pint in the pub afterwards, doesn’t it?

Daily Upgrade Newsletter

SIGN UP TO RECEIVE MEN'S HEALTH NEWSLETTERS

We sift through all the day's new research and studies to provide all – and only – what you need to know

Workouts and recipes from the best trainers and nutritionists in the world

Fitness challenges, culture picks, quizzes and everything else you need to make the most of your downtime

Enter your email address:

Please tick if you would prefer not to receive news & special offers from Hearst Magazines UK.
Please tick if you would like to receive news & special offers from selected partners of Hearst Magazines UK
Please tick if you would also like to receive the Men's Health Newsletter
Please tick if you would also like to receive the Men's Health Style Newsletter